Pedestal unit, raised floor skeleton structure, method of installing pedestal unit, and method of producing pedestal frame

ABSTRACT

A pedestal unit usable for a raised floor is disclosed which comprises: a pair of beams; and a pair of pedestal frames for supporting the beams at both ends of the beams, respectively. Each pedestal frame comprises: a pair of leg members; a pair of base plates for supporting the leg members; respectively, and a connecting member with a predetermined length for rigidly connecting the legs member each other with a predetermined interval. The pedestal frame may be installed under a middle portion of the beams, which frame may be installed after installation of pedestal frames at ends of beams for easy adjustment. Additional pedestal frames for supporting additional beams may be fixed to the pedestal frames or the beam. A supporting surface of leg member may have a mount provided by casting and be cut for accurate dimensions.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to a pedestal unit, a raised floor skeleton structure, a method of installing pedestal units, and a method of producing a pedestal frame.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Pedestal units for constructing a raised floor are known. Such a pedestal unit having four legs for providing a skeleton structure for a raised floor (double floor structure) is disclosed in Japanese laid-open Utility Model application publication No. 5-43154.

FIG. 15 shows a related art skeleton structure for the raised floor using the pedestal unit, in which a pedestal unit array including a plurality of pedestal units 110 arranged with gaps is installed on a floor slab, beams 120 are bridged between consecutive skeleton structures 100, and deck panels 130 are bridged between the skeleton units 100 including the pedestal unit 110 and the beams 120.

Such a raised floor is frequently installed in a room in which a large number of communication units or computers are installed. More specifically, heavy units D such as a communication unit are mounted on the skeleton structure 100, and a plurality of floor panels 130 bridged between skeleton structures arranged with a gap are used as a passage as well as lids for inspection.

Since the floor surface of the raised floor should be horizontally arranged, the skeleton structures 100 are required to be horizontally installed. More specifically, each pedestal unit 110 should be horizontally installed and thus heights of upper surfaces of pedestal units 110 should be equalized.

The operation of horizontally installing each pedestal unit 110 having four legs was very burdensome. To be more specific, each pedestal unit 110 requires height adjustment at four places for leveling as well as requires height adjustment between the upper surface thereof and those of the neighboring pedestal units 100. In other words, in a minimum unit including two consecutive pedestal units 110 supporting two beams 120, these pedestal units require the height adjustment at eight places for leveling.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

According to the present invention, there is preferably provided a pedestal unit capable of readily constructing a skeleton structure for a raised floor, and a method of installing the pedestal units for the raised floor.

According to the represent invention, there is preferably provided a raised floor skeleton structure for the raised floor with the pedestal units capable of being readily constructed.

According to the invention, there is preferably provided a method of producing the pedestal unit used for readily constructing the skeleton structure for the raised floor.

According to a first aspect of the present invention provides a pedestal unit usable for a raised floor, the pedestal unit comprising: a pair of beams; and a pair of pedestal frames for supporting both ends of the beams, respectively, wherein each pedestal frame comprises: a pair of leg members; a pair of base plates for supporting the leg members, respectively; and a connecting member for rigidly connecting the leg members to each other with a predetermined interval.

This pedestal unit provides a high efficiency in an installation process. The conventional pedestal unit requires height control at eight places of the each pedestal unit. On the other hand, this pedestal unit according to the present invention can reduce the number of places to be adjusted for leveling to two for each pedestal frame, i.e., four places in total for each pedestal unit. The leg members and the connecting member of the pedestal frame may be unitedly shaped or independently shaped. Further, the dimensions of the pedestal frame may be a half of that of the conventional pedestal frame, so that weight of each pedestal frame also decreases, which provides an easy installation process.

A second aspect of the present invention provides a pedestal unit based on the first aspect, wherein an intermediate pedestal frame that is arranged between a pair of the pedestal frames for supporting the beams, the intermediate pedestal comprising: a pair of leg members; a pair of base plates for supporting the leg members of the intermediate pedestal frame, respectively; and a connecting member for rigidly connecting the leg members of the intermediate pedestal frame each other with a given length.

This pedestal unit supports two beams with more than two pedestal frames and thus more preferable for the case that heavy units are loaded on the pedestal units. Each pedestal frame has a bridge shape, so that the length thereof along the beams is short, which provides high degree of freedom in arrangement thereof. More specifically, even if a lot of intermediate pedestal frames are installed, each intermediate pedestal frame does not interfere with the pedestal frames at both ends of the beams and other intermediate pedestal frames. As a result, if there is a request for supporting a heavy unit at a particular place, only addition of the intermediate pedestal frame increases the load capacity at the particular place. Furthermore, the beam is not fixed at two points but more than two points per pedestal frame, which provides a so-called continuous beam structure having an extremely high strength.

A third aspect of the present invention provides a pedestal unit based on the first aspect, wherein an additional beam arranged at a side of a pair of the beams and a plurality of additional pedestal frames for supporting the additional beam are further provided, and wherein each of the additional pedestal frames comprises: an additional leg member; an additional base plate for supporting the additional leg member; and an extending member extending from the additional leg member with a predetermined span to the beam arranged at the side of the additional pedestal frames, the additional leg member being rigidly connected through the extending member at a tip of the extending member to at least one of the pedestal frames and the beam that is arranged at the side of said additional pedestal frame.

This pedestal unit further comprises the additional beam at at least one of sides of the two beams. This pedestal unit includes at least three beams. This provides secure mount for a heavy unit or a wide unit. Further, the additional pedestal frames and an additional beam are installed at a side of the basic pedestal unit. Thus, the modifying process can be carried out with the heavy units mounted on other pedestal units remaining as they are, even if any pedestal unit at a given place is modified.

A fourth aspect of the present invention provides a raised floor skeleton structure for supporting a raised floor, the raised floor skeleton structure comprising: a plurality of pedestal units each comprising: a pair of beams; and a pedestal frame for supporting the beams at one ends of the beams, wherein each pedestal frame comprises: a pair of leg members; a pair of base plates for supporting the leg members, respectively; and a connecting member with a predetermined length for rigidly connecting the legs member each other, wherein a plurality of the pedestal units are sequentially connected in a longitudinal direction of the beams, wherein one ends of the beams of a one of pedestal units confronts the other ends of the beams of another one of pedestal units neighboring the one of the pedestal units, and wherein the pedestal frame of the one of pedestal unit comprises first regions for supporting the one ends of the beams of the one of the pedestal unit and second regions for supporting the other ends of the beams of the another one of the pedestal unit.

This skeleton structure provides the raised floor with a high accuracy in assembling even if a plurality of pedestal units are connected since the beams are continuously arranged over its total length of the skeleton structures. For example, even if heavy units are mounted on the beam, the accuracy of installation will be kept very high.

A fifth aspect of the present invention provides a method of installing on a floor a pedestal unit comprising a pair of beams arranged in parallel and more than two pedestal frames each including leg members and a connecting member in a bridge shape and a leveling mechanism provided to each of the leg members, the method comprising the steps: installing two of the pedestal frames at both ends of the beams; controlling the leveling mechanism of the two of the pedestal frames to level the beams; and after leveling the two of the pedestal frames, installing remaining part of more than the two pedestal frames.

This method causes the installation process to have a very high efficiency. More specifically, after the beams are leveled with the leveling mechanism of the pedestal frames at both ends of the beams, heights of pedestal frames at an intermediate position of the beam are determined only by equalizing the height (vertical length) of the intermediate pedestal frame to the height of the beams from the floor.

A sixth aspect of the present invention provides a method of installing on a floor a pedestal unit comprising a pair of beams and more than two pedestal frames each including leg members and a connecting member and a height control mechanism provided to each of the leg members, the method comprising the steps of: installing the pedestal frames to support at least both ends of the beams; controlling the height control mechanism of the pedestal frames supporting both ends of the beams to level the beams; after controlling the height control mechanism of the pedestal frames at both ends of the beams to level the beams, installing a remaining part of more than the two pedestal frames; and controlling the height control mechanism of the pedestal frames other than the pedestal frames at both ends.

This method of installing the pedestal unit can level the upper surfaces of beams only by controlling the heights of two pedestal frames at the both ends of the beams. This improves the efficiency of the installation process. In other words, this structure does not require control of the heights of all pedestal frames.

According to a seventh aspect of the present invention provides a method of installing a pedestal unit comprising a pair of beams, two first pedestal frames for supporting both ends of the beams, and at least one of second pedestal frames including supporting surfaces for supporting intermediate portions of the beams and lower surfaces, each of the first and second pedestal frames being provided with a height control mechanism, the method comprising the steps of: (a) installing the first pedestal frames on a floor at both ends of the beams and fixing the first pedestal frames at the both ends of the beams to the beams, respectively; (b) controlling the height control mechanism of the first pedestal frames to level the beams; (c) after the step (b), fixing the supporting surfaces of the second pedestal frame on the intermediate portions of the beams, respectively; (d) after the step (c), controlling the height control mechanism of the second pedestal frames to make the lower surfaces of the pedestal frames in contact with the floor; and (e) fixing the lower surfaces to the floor.

This method of installing the pedestal units can level the upper surfaces of the beams only by controlling the heights of the pedestal frames at both ends of the beams. This improves the installation efficiency. In other words, the height adjustment for the intermediate pedestal frame 10′ can be carried out with reference to the height of the beams that have been leveled.

An eighth aspect of the present invention provides a method of producing a pedestal frame that is arranged on a floor and includes supporting surfaces supporting beams for supporting a raised floor, the method comprising the steps: casting the pedestal frame to include mounds on the supporting surfaces; and cutting the mounds to provide the supporting surfaces.

If the pedestal frame is produced by casting, actually, it is frequent that accuracy in dimension of the supporting surfaces of the pedestal frames for the beams disperses from the designed values due to twisting and errors in dimension of the mold and heat processing. However, casting the whole of the pedestal frame provided with the mound layer previously on the supporting surface for the beam and then, cutting the supporting surface provides accurate even supporting surfaces for installation as well as the mound can be used as a draft angle.

The pedestal unit and the method of installing the pedestal unit according to the present invention improves installation in efficiency, namely, provides, easy construction of the skeleton structure for the raised floor.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The object and features of the present invention will become more readily apparent from the following detailed description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of pedestal units according to a first embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the pedestal unit according to the first embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a pedestal frame according to the first embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 4 is a front view of the pedestal frame according to the first embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 5 is a side view of the pedestal frame according to the first embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 6 is a cross sectional view of a beam according to the first embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 7A is a side view of the pedestal unit according to the first embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 7B is an enlarged view of the leftmost portion of the beam FIG. 7A;

FIG. 7C is an enlarged view of FIG. 7A at the intermediate portion of the beam in FIG. 7A;

FIG. 7D is an enlarged view of the rightmost portion of the beam in FIG. 7A;

FIG. 8 is a side view of the installed pedestal unit adjacent to a wall according to the first embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 9 is a perspective view of a floor panel according to the present invention;

FIG. 10 is a perspective view of the pedestal unit in a disassembled condition for illustrating a method of installation according to the first embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 11 is a perspective view of pedestal units according to a second embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 12 is a front view of an additional pedestal frame according to the second embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 13 is a perspective view of the pedestal unit in a disassembled condition for illustrating a method of installation according to the second embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 14A is a side view of a leg member for illustrating a method of producing the pedestal frame according to the present invention;

FIG. 14B is a partially enlarged view of the leg member shown in FIG. 14A; and

FIG. 15 is a perspective view of a related art skeleton structure.

The same or corresponding elements or parts are designated with like references throughout the drawings.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

Hereinafter, embodiments according to the present invention will be described with reference to drawings with an example in which a raised floor is constructed in a communication unit room in which electronic units such as a communication unit and a computer are installed.

First Embodiment

Referring now to FIG. 1, a raised floor structure (double floor structure) for a communication unit room is shown. The skeleton structures H according to the first embodiment comprise a plurality of pedestal units 1 connected in series and arranged in a direction with a predetermined gap to construct a raised floor.

The raised floor installed in the communication unit room is constructed to provide heavy unit installing regions G where heavy electronic units such as a communication unit are installed, general passages I provided between the heavy unit installing regions G, a main passage M extending perpendicularly to the general passages I, and an air-conditioning unit installing region E. The heavy unit installing region G and the air-conditioning unit installing region E are provided with the skeleton structures H and a skeleton structure H′, respectively, placed on a floor slab S, in which heavy units (not shown) are installed on the skeleton structures H, and air-conditioning units (not shown) are installed on the skeleton structure H′.

The general passage I is provided with floor panels P placed between skeleton structures H that are arranged at the predetermined interval, and the main passage M is provided with floor panels P′ placed between the skeleton structures H and H′ or between the general passage I and the skeleton structure H′.

The air-conditioning units installed at the air-conditioning unit region E eject cooled air into space between the raised floor and the floor slab S to remove heat generated by communication units installed at the heavy unit installing regions G.

Although the structure and material of the floor panel P are not particularly limited, for example, as shown in FIG. 9, the floor panel P is constructed with a planar body P1 which is provided by cutting an extruded aluminum alloy member with an appropriate length and end plates P2.

Pedestal Unit

The pedestal unit 1 comprises, as shown in FIG. 2, a pair of beams 20, a pair of pedestal frames 10 for supporting both ends of the beams 20, respectively, and an intermediate pedestal frame 10′ arranged between the pedestal frames 10 for supporting the beams 20. The intermediate pedestal frame 10′ has the same structure as the pedestal frames 10 and thus the detailed description of the intermediate pedestal frame will be omitted.

This embodiment shows an example in which an intermediate pedestal frame 10′ is arranged between a pair of pedestal frames 10. However, a larger number of the intermediate frames 10′ may be installed in accordance with a load applied to the beams 10 or a loading condition. Further, the intermediate frame 10′ may be omitted.

Hereinafter, “inside” or “inner” means the region between the leg member 10A and under the connecting member 10B inclusively, and “outside” or “outer” is the outside of them.

In FIG. 2, a front of the pedestal frame 10 (intermediate pedestal frame 10′) is shown as this side of the drawing and the rear portion of the pedestal frame 10 is hidden.

Pedestal Frame

The pedestal frame 10 (10′) comprises, as shown in FIG. 2, a pair of leg members 10A vertically standing on the floor slab S, a connecting member 10B horizontally extending with a predetermined length for rigidly connecting a pair of the leg members 10A each other, and plate-like supporting members extending at the upper end of the leg members 10A along the beams 20, in which the front view of the pedestal frame looks like a bridge. In addition, a leveling mechanism 50 is provided between the lower end of the leg member 10A and the floor slab S to adjust the level of the pedestal frame 10 for leveling the raised floor.

The leg member 10A comprises, as shown in FIG. 3, a bottom plate 11, a leg flange 12 vertically extending from the rear edge of the bottom plate 11, and a side wall 13 vertically extending from the side edge of the bottom plate 11.

At the substantially middle of the bottom plate 11, a through hole 11 a is formed to be pierced by a leveling bolt 52 (see FIG. 4). At an inside edge of the leg flange 12 (arch side of leg flange 12 and connecting member 10B), a rib 12 a is formed.

As shown in FIG. 4, a plurality of openings 12 b (two in this embodiment) are formed in the leg flange 12. This lightens the pedestal frame 10 and allows the air from the air-conditioning unit to flow therethrough increasing an efficient of cooling.

At an upper portion of the leg flange 12 (at a boundary thereof with the connecting member 10B) on which stresses concentrate, a thick portion 12 c having a thickness greater than other portions is provided.

The side wall 13 has an L-shape in the side view of the leg flange 12. At an edge of the side wall 13, a rib 13 a is formed from the lower end of the side wall 13 to the lower surface of the supporting member 10C. At the substantially middle of the side wall 13, three holes 13 b are formed for mounting a rack (not shown) for binding cables for the heavy units. At an upper end of a rear edge of the side wall 13, a stiffener 13 c is formed with a triangle form along the lower surface of the supporting member 10C.

The connecting member 10B comprises, as shown in FIG. 4, a connecting flange 14 bridging between the thickness portion 12 c of one leg flange 12 and the thick portion 12 c of the other leg flange 12, an upper rib 15 formed along an upper edge of the connecting flange 14, and an under rib 16 formed at the lower edge of the connecting flange 14.

In the connecting flange 14, a plurality of openings 14 a (six in this embodiment) are formed, which lighten the pedestal frame 10 and allow the air from the air-conditioning unit to flow therethrough, increasing an efficient of cooling.

At the middle of the connecting flange 14 on which stresses concentrate, a thick portion 14 b that is thicker than other portions is formed.

The upper rib 15 extends, as shown in FIG. 3, from the upper edge of the connecting flange 14 in the front direction and the rear direction, and both side ends are connected to the supporting members 10C, respectively. A lower rib 16 extends in the front direction from the lower edge of the connecting flange 14, and both side ends are connected to the ribs 12 a of the leg flanges 12, respectively.

The upper rib 15 and the lower rib 16 are provided to the connecting flange 14, which can compensate decrease in strength by forming the openings 14 a (see FIG. 4) in the connecting flange 14.

The supporting member 10C includes, as shown in FIG. 3, a first region 17 extending from the leg flange 12 of the leg member 10A in the front direction and a second region 18 extending from the leg flange 12 of the leg member 10A in the rear direction, wherein the first region 17 has a longer length than the second region 18.

The first region 17 is formed along an upper edge of the sidewall 13 and its upper surface is flat. At the tip of the first region 17, a pair of fixing holes 17 a are formed in the supporting member 10C at the both sides of the side wall 13. At the foundation portion of the first region 17, a pair of second fixing holes 17 b are formed in the supporting member 10C. The second region 18 is formed along an upper edge of the stiffener 13 c. At the second region 18 of the supporting member 10C, a pair of third fixing holes 18 a are formed in the supporting member 10C at the both sides of the stiffener 13 c. The first region is connected to the second region 18.

The shorter length of the second region 18 than that of the first region 17 allows a closer access of the edge of the pedestal unit 1 to a wall of the room. More specifically, when the pedestal frame 10 located nearest to the wall of the room is installed such that the second region 18 of the supporting member 10C of the pedestal flame 10 confronts to the wall, the edge of the pedestal unit 1 is arranged to be adjacent to the wall, which results in spreading of the heavy unit installing region G (see FIGS. 1 and 8) to walls of the communication unit room.

The pedestal frame 10 has weight that is substantially half of that of the conventional pedestal unit 110 having four legs (see FIG. 15), which remarkably improves a working efficiency of installing process.

In addition, the beams 20 are placed on the supporting members 10C of the pedestal frame 10, and on the beams 20, heavy units D are installed, so that the height of the pedestal frame 10 becomes lower than that of the conventional one, which further contributes lightening the weight thereof.

The pedestal frame 10 is formed by casting an aluminum alloy and molded so as to unitize the pedestal frame 10, the leg member 10A, and the connecting member 10B, and the supporting member 10C. Forming the pedestal frame 10 by casting an aluminum alloy can make use of features of the aluminum alloy which is light with enough strength and a good corrosion resistance under the same strength condition. Further, lightweight of the pedestal frame 10 provides easy handling. In addition, formation of the pedestal frame 10 by casting reduces the number of processes after casting, even if an optimum design without redundancy is aimed.

If the pedestal frame 10 is formed by casting, it was frequently difficult to secure accuracy in dimensions against the designed values of a smoothness at the first and second regions 17 and 18 (hereinafter, may be referred to as a beam supporting surface A), equality in height of the beam supporting surface A between each pair of the pedestal frames 10, and equality in height of the beam supporting surface A between different pedestal frames 10 (see FIG. 14). To solve the problem, for example, the pedestal frame 10 is formed such that the final beam supporting surface A is provided with a thickness t1 for the supporting member 10C that is necessary for supporting the beam 20 and a mound 19 on the supporting member 10C. After a heat process, the beam supporting surface A is subject to milling with a milling machine (not shown) to remove the mound 19. The mound 19 is preferably formed with a mound layer 19 a provided with taking account of twist on casting and a slope 19 b provided as a slope for die cutting. A thickness t2 of the mound layer 19 a is, for example, 2 mm, and the slope 19 b rises from the front edge of the first region 17 toward the rear end of the second region 18 at θ=1°.

As mentioned above, the whole of the pedestal frame 10 is cast with the mound 19 on the beam supporting surface A, and then, the beam supporting surface A is milled, which makes the beam supporting surfaces A of a pair of leg members 10A smooth and equalizes the heights of the beam supporting surfaces A between a pair of pedestal frames 10 and among different pedestal frames 10. This remarkably facilitates leveling upon installation with a high quality of installation. In addition, the mound 19 can be used as the slope for die cutting accompanying the casting, which also facilitates designing a mold.

Leveling Mechanism

As shown in FIG. 4, the leveling mechanism 50 comprises a base plate 51 fixed to the floor slab S with anchor bolts 51 a, an adjustment bolt 52 to be stood on the base plate 51, a lower nut 53 and an upper nut 54 into which the adjusting bolt 52 is to be screwed, the lower nut 53 and the upper nut 54 sandwiching the bottom plate 11. Adjusting the positions of the lower and upper nuts 53 and 54 controls the level of the leg member 10A. Then, the leveling mechanism 50 at the other pedestal frame 10 is adjusted to level the upper surface of the supporting member 10C.

Beam

As shown in FIG. 6, the beam 20 is fixed to the beam supporting surface A of the supporting member 10C of the pedestal frame 10 so as to be supported by the pedestal frame 10. In this embodiment, the beam 20 comprises a tubular body 21 including a step member 22 (hereinafter, also referred to as mounting member 22) and a fixing member 23 horizontally extending from an upper edge of the body 21 inwardly (to the right of the body 21 in FIG. 6).

Inside the body 21, a horizontal reinforce wall 21 a having substantially the same height as the mounting member 22, and a slantwise reinforcing wall 21 b for connecting an end of the horizontal reinforcing wall 21 a to a first connecting groove 24 are formed. This structure secures sufficient yield strength against loads in general conditions and at earthquake.

At the lower part of the body 21, first connecting grooves 24 each having an opening that is downwardly directed, and under the mounting member 22 at a side of the body 21, a second connecting groove 25 having an opening outwardly directed is formed. At an upper edge of the body 21, a first packing groove 26 having an opening outwardly directed is formed, and a second packing groove 27 having an opening upwardly directed is formed in the mounting member 22.

In the fixing member 23, a plurality of fixing holes 23 a are formed with a predetermined interval in the longitudinal direction of the beam 20 and bolts B2 for fixing the heavy units are pierced fixing holes 23 a.

In addition, if a connection groove (not shown) is provided to the fixing member 23, although the heavy units mounted on the upper surface of the fixing member 23 have dimensions according to different standards, the heavy unit can be readily fixed to the connection groove.

In the first connecting groove 24, heads of bolts B1 for fixing the supporting member 10C of the pedestal frame 10 to the beam 20 are set. In addition, at the inner wall of the first connecting groove 24, a protrusion 24 a is formed to be in contact with the bolt B1 to prevent the bolt B1 from rotating during fixing.

An internal dimension of the first connecting groove 24 is equalized to a short side of a plate washer W1 having through holes into which the heads of the bolts B1 are inserted. In addition, on a lower surface of the plate washer W1, edges (not shown) are formed so as to extend perpendicular to the longitudinal direction of the first connecting groove 24. As a result, when the bolt B1 is fastened, the edges enter a lower wall the first connecting groove 24, which prevents the bolt B1 from moving in the longitudinal direction of the beam 20.

In the second connecting groove 25, bolts for fixing additional pedestal frames 30 mentioned later (see FIG. 12) may be inserted. However, this structure is the same as the first connecting groove 24 mentioned above, so that a detailed description will be omitted.

In the first packing groove 26, a first packing 26 a is inserted to intervene with the edge surface of the floor panel P (end plate P2). In the second packing groove 27, a second packing 27 a is inserted to intervene with the lower surface of the floor panel P.

The beam 20 comprises an extrusion member made of an aluminum alloy having a cross section shown in FIG. 6 that is continuously shown along the longitudinal direction of the beam 20 (vertical direction in the drawing).

As mentioned above, the first connecting groove 24 and the second connecting groove 25 are continuously formed in the longitudinal direction of the beam 20, so that the bolts B1 can be shifted at desired places. This facilitates the installing process, although an error occurs in the installation of the raised floor. In addition, after use of the raised floor if, for example, a new intermediate pedestal frame 10′ is required to be added, the addition can be easily provided. More specifically, the first connecting groove 24 is continuously formed in the longitudinal direction of the beam 20, which allows the bolts B1 at desired positions along the longitudinal direction. In other words, even if the new intermediate pedestal frame 10 is added, there is no necessity of making fixing holes in the beam 20.

In the first and second connecting grooves 24 and 25, the openings are partially widened at appropriate locations. In other words, for example, opening edge portions 24 c of the first connecting groove 24 has notches which allow the heads of bolts B1 and the plate washers W1 are inserted into the first connecting groove 24. Alternatively, the heads of bolts B1 and the plate washers W1 may be inserted in advance into the first connecting groove 24.

As mentioned above, the beam 20 is made using an extrusion member comprising the aluminum alloy, which facilitates assembling and modifying the pedestal units 1 in addition to advantageous effect in that the beam 20 is light with enough strength and a good corrosion resistance relative to its strength. Further, when beams 20 having different lengths are requested, it is sufficient only to cut the extrusion member with different dimensions, which can reduce the manufacturing cost.

The beams 20 constructed as described above are fixed at both ends to the pedestal frames 10, and its middle portion is fixed to the intermediate pedestal frame 10′, as shown in FIG. 7A.

More specifically, as shown in FIG. 7B, one end of the beam 20 (the left end of the beam in FIG. 7A) is placed on the second region 18 of the supporting portion 10C, in which the bolts B1 of which heads are charged in the first connecting grooves 24 are inserted through the third fixing holes 18 a (see FIG. 3), and ends of the bolts B1 protruding downwardly are screwed and fastened with the nuts N1 to fix the beam 20 on the pedestal frame 10.

Similarly, the other end of the beam 20 is, as shown in FIG. 7D, is placed on the first region 17 of the supporting portion 10C, in which the bolts B1 of which heads are charged in the first connecting grooves 24 are inserted through the first fixing holes 17 a and the second fixing holes 17 b (see FIG. 3), and ends of the bolts B1 protruding downwardly are screwed and fastened with the nuts N1 to rigidly fix the beam 20 to the pedestal frame 10.

Furthermore, the intermediate portion of the beam 20 is, as shown in FIG. 7C, is placed on the first and second regions 17 and 18 of the supporting portion 10C, in which bolts B1 of which heads are charged in the first connecting grooves 24 are inserted through the first and third fixing holes 17 a and 18 a (see FIG. 3), and ends of the bolts B1 protruding downwardly are screwed and fastened with the nuts N1 to fix the beam 20 to the pedestal frame 10. Thus, the intermediate portion of the beam 20 is fixed to the pedestal frame 10 at two positions in the longitudinal direction of the beam 20, which provides rigid fixation of the beam 20 to the pedestal frame 10.

Thus, both ends and the intermediate portion of the beam 20 are rigidly fixed with the pedestal frames 10 and the intermediate pedestal frame 10′, to provide a rigid frame structure.

As mentioned above, in the pedestal unit 1 according to the first embodiment, the beam 20 is continuously supported by the three pedestal frames 10 and 10′, in which the rigid frame structure is provided in the pedestal frame and assembled structure by installation.

In this embodiment, the beam 20 is rigidly fixed to the two pedestal frames 10 and 10′ out of three pedestal frames 10 and 10′. However, rigidly fixing the beam 20 to at least one pedestal frame 10 or 10′ provides a rigid pedestal unit 1.

Method of Installing Pedestal Units

As shown in FIG. 10, first, the pedestal frames 10 for supporting both ends of the beams 20 are fixed in a standup position on the floor slab S. More specifically, the leveling mechanism 50 is fixed to the leg member 10A of the pedestal frame 10, and then at a predetermined position on the floor slab S, anchor bolts 51 a are hit into the floor slab S from the upper side of each base plate 51 (see FIG. 4).

Next, both leveling mechanisms 50 of each pedestal frame 10 are controlled by adjusting the lower nuts 53 and the upper nuts 54 to make the upper surface of the pedestal frame 10 approximately horizontal as well as levels of neighboring pedestal frames 10 are approximately equalized to this pedestal frame 10.

Subsequently, two beams 20 are mounted on consecutive two pedestal frames 10 and fixed to the supporting members 10C with the bolts B1 of which heads are charged into the first connecting grooves 24. More specifically, one end of each beam is, as shown in FIG. 7B, mounted on the second region 18 and the other end of the beam 20 is, as shown in FIG. 7D, mounted on the first region 17. Each beam 20 is fixed to the pedestal frames 10 with a plurality of bolts B1 of which heads are charged into the first connecting grooves 24 (see FIG. 6) and nuts N1.

Next, at each pedestal frame 10, the upper surface of the beam 20 (the upper surface of the pedestal unit 1) is made horizontal. In this process, the upper surface of each pedestal unit 1 can be made horizontal by adjustment at two places for each pedestal frame 10, so that the upper surfaces of the pedestal unit 1 can be made horizontal at four places in total, which provides a high efficiency in installing process.

Next, at the intermediate place of the beams 20, the intermediate pedestal frame 10′ is placed on the floor slab S, and then the upper surface of the supporting member 10C is in contact with the lower surfaces of the beams 20, and is fixed by screwing with a plurality of the bolts B1 and the nuts N1 to the upper surface of the beams 20. Subsequently, a lower surface of the base plate 51 is made in contact with the floor slab S by controlling the leveling mechanism 50, and then the base plate 51 is fixed with anchor bolts 51 a. Thus, this process has a higher efficiency in installation.

Further, the intermediate pedestal frame 10′ can be installed after installation of the beams 20. In other words, the intermediate pedestal frame 10′ can be additionally installed not only during the initial installation but also after use of the raised floor. Thus, the pedestal unit 1 has such a structure as to be easily reinforced, repaired, and to allow the heavy units to be moved and replaced.

Skelton Structure

As shown in FIG. 1, the skeleton structure H comprises a plurality of pedestal units 1 arranged in a longitudinal direction of the pedestal unit 1 (beams 20).

The skeleton structure H may be constructed by arranging a plurality of pedestal units 1 with a predetermined gap in the longitudinal direction of the pedestal units 1 and connecting neighboring pedestal units 1 with appropriate beams. However, more preferably, as shown in FIGS. 7A and 7D, ends of beams 20 of one of consecutive two pedestal units are mounted on and fixed to the pedestal frame 10 of the other pedestal unit 1 to provide continuity of the beams 20. Thus, the pedestal frame 10 located at an end of the pedestal unit 1 is commonly used between the pedestal unit 1 and the neighboring pedestal units 1′ (see FIG. 7A).

With this structure, the beams 20 are continuously arranged along the whole of the skeleton structure H. As a result, even if heavy units are mounted on the beams 20, this structure provides a high accuracy in assembling.

In addition, as shown in FIG. 8, in the pedestal unit 1 arranged beside the wall of the room, the pedestal frame 10 is preferably arranged with its direction inversed (opposite to that of the other pedestal frame). In other words, the pedestal frame 10 located beside the wall of the room is arranged with the second region 18 (see FIG. 3) having a shorter length of its extending portion directed to the wall of the room.

This structure makes the heavy unit installing region G (see FIGS. 1 and 8) expanding to ends of the room.

Second Embodiment

A pedestal unit 2 according to a second embodiment is used for stably mounting heavy units having dimension larger than that in the first embodiment. The pedestal unit 2 comprises, as shown in FIG. 11, the pedestal unit 1 (hereinafter, referred to as a basic pedestal unit 1) and an additional pedestal unit 2 arranged at the side of the basic pedestal unit 1.

Additional Pedestal Unit

The additional pedestal unit 2 comprises an additional beam 40 arranged at the side of the beam 20 of the basic pedestal unit 1 and a plurality of additional pedestal frames 30 arranged under the additional beam 40.

Additional Leg Frame

The additional pedestal frame 30 comprises, as shown in FIG. 12, a leg member 30A vertically standing on the floor slab S, an extending member 30B extending from the leg member 30A to the beam 20 of the basic pedestal unit 1, and plate-like supporting member 30C, at the upper end of the leg member 30A, extending along the beams 20, in which the front view looks like a letter of L. In addition, the leveling mechanism 50 is provided between the lower end of the leg member 30A and the floor slab S to adjust the level of the leg member 30A.

The leg member 30A comprises a bottom plate 31, a leg flange 32 vertically extending from the rear edge of the bottom plate 31, and a side wall 33 vertically extending from the side edge of the bottom plate 31. This structure is the same as the leg member 10A of the pedestal frame 10 in the first embodiment, and thus, a detailed description will be omitted.

The leg member 30B comprises an extending flange 34 horizontally extending with a predetermined length (span) from a thick member 32 c of the leg flange 32, an upper rib 35 formed along the upper edge of the extending flange 34, an under rib 36 formed along an under edge of the extending flange 34, and a mounting bracket 39 having a shape of letter “L” in its a cross section.

In the extending flange 34, a plurality of openings 34 a (two in this embodiment) are formed. This lightens the additional pedestal frame 30 and allows the air from the air-conditioning unit to flow therethrough, increasing an efficient of cooling.

At a tip of the upper rib 35, as shown in FIG. 13, a pair of fixing holes 35 a are formed, and in the mounting bracket 39, a pair of fixing holes 39 a are formed at the locations corresponding to the fixing holes 35 a.

The supporting member 30C comprises, as shown in FIG. 13, a first region 37 extending in the front thereof (along the beam 40) and a second region 38 extending in the rear direction thereof (along the beam 40). These members are similar to those in the pedestal frame 10 in the first embodiment and thus, the detailed description will be omitted.

The beam 40 for additionally installation is, as shown in FIGS. 11 and 12, are supported on the upper surface of the supporting member 30. Its structure is the same as the beam 20, and thus a detailed description will be omitted.

Method of Installing the Additional Leg Frame

First, the mounting bracket 39 is, as shown in FIG. 13, fixed to a side surface of the beam 20 of the basic pedestal unit 1. More specifically, bolts B3 of which heads are charged in the second connecting groove 25 (see FIG. 6) in the basic pedestal unit 1 are inserted into the fixing holes 39 b and fastened with nuts N3. For installation of the additional pedestal unit 2, no machining process for the beam 20 of the basic pedestal unit 1 is required. More specifically, as mentioned above, the second connecting groove 25 extends along the longitudinal direction of the beam 20, so that no new holes for bolts can be formed.

Next, the additional pedestal frame 30 is vertically installed on the floor slab S at a side of the pedestal frame 10 or the intermediate pedestal frame 10′. More specifically, as shown in FIG. 12, the leveling mechanism 50 is mounted on the leg member 30A of the additional frame 30 and then the base plate 51 is fixed at a predetermined position on the floor slab S to the floor slab S with the anchor bolts 51 a driven from the upper side of the base plate 51.

Subsequently, the upper rib 35, i.e., the upper surface of the additional pedestal frame 30, is made in contact with the lower surface of the mounting bracket 39, and adaptively slide against the mounting bracket 39 to make agreement of the fixing holes 39 a with the fixing holes 35 a in the upper rib 35 to insert the bolts B4 therethrough, that are fastened by the nuts N4.

As mentioned above, the additional pedestal frame 30 and the additional beam 40 are installed at the side of the basic pedestal unit 1 and are fixed using the second connecting groove 25, which eliminates the necessity of disassembling the basic pedestal unit 1 in the adding process and additional machining process to the basic pedestal unit 1. In other words, when the basic pedestal unit 1 is modified to that for a wide heavy unit, the modification can be carried out although heavy units are mounted on non-modified basic pedestal unit 1.

In addition, in this embodiment, the additional pedestal frame 30 is installed at the side of the pedestal frame 10. However, the installing position of the additional pedestal frame 30 is not limited thereto. More specifically, the additional pedestal frame 30 can be installed at the side of the intermediate pedestal frame 10′.

Further, in this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 11, at only one side of the basic pedestal unit 1, the additional pedestal frame 2 is installed. However, the additional pedestal units 2 can be installed at both sides of the basic pedestal unit 1. Further, in this embodiment, the beam 20 is connected to the additional pedestal frame 30 with the bolts B3 of which heads are charged in the second connecting groove 25 (see FIG. 6) in the basic pedestal unit 1. However, the tip of the additional pedestal frame 30 may be connected to a top portion of the leg member 10A.

Further, the additional pedestal frame 30 is provided with the first and second regions in the same manner as the first and second regions 17 and 18 of the pedestal frame 10, so that the additional pedestal frame 30 can support one end of one additional beam 40 and the other end of another additional beam 40 as similarly shown in FIGS. 7A to 7D.

Further, the predetermined length of the connecting member 10B corresponds to the span of the arranged beams 20. The leg member 10A is arranged just under the beam 20. The connecting member 10B connects upper portions of the leg members 10A. The span of the extending member 30B extending from the upper portion of the leg member 30A may correspond to a half of the span of the beams 20. The leg member 10A is reinforced in two perpendicular directions to its extending direction (vertical direction) with planer structures including the leg flange 12, the rib 12 a, and the side wall 13, and the connecting member 10B is reinforced in two perpendicular directions to its extending direction (horizontal direction) with another planer structures including the connecting flange 14, the upper rib 15, and the under rib 16 to keep the form of the bridge shape of the pedestal frame 10 with reduction of deformation against loads. 

1. A pedestal unit usable for a raised floor, comprising: a pair of beams; and a pair of pedestal frames for supporting both ends of the beams, respectively, wherein each pedestal frame comprises: a pair of leg members; a pair of base plates for supporting the leg members, respectively; and a connecting member with a predetermined length for rigidly connecting the leg members each other.
 2. The pedestal unit as claimed in claim 1, further comprising an intermediate pedestal frame that is arranged between a pair of the pedestal frames for supporting the beams, wherein the intermediate pedestal frame comprises: a pair of leg members; a pair of base plates for supporting the leg members of the intermediate pedestal frame, respectively; and a connecting member for rigidly connecting the leg members of the intermediate pedestal frame each other with a predetermined distance.
 3. The pedestal unit as claimed in claim 2, further comprising: an additional beam arranged on at a side of a pair of the beams; a plurality of additional pedestal frames for supporting the additional beam, wherein each of the additional pedestal frames comprises: an additional leg member; an additional base plate for supporting the additional leg member; and an extending member extending from the additional leg member with a predetermined span to the beam arranged at the side of the additional pedestal frames, the additional leg member being rigidly connected through the extending member at a tip of the extending member to at least one of the pedestal frames and the beam that is arranged at the side of said additional pedestal frame.
 4. The pedestal unit as claimed in claim 1, further comprising: an additional beam arranged at a side of a pair of the beams; a plurality of additional pedestal frames for supporting the additional beam, wherein each of the additional pedestal frames comprises: an additional leg member; an additional base plate for supporting the additional leg member; and an extending member extending from the additional leg member with a predetermined span to the beam arranged at the side of the additional pedestal frames, a tip of the extending member being connected to at least one of the pedestal frames and the beam that is arranged at the side of said additional pedestal frame.
 5. A raised floor skeleton structure for supporting a raised floor, comprising: a plurality of pedestal units each comprising: a pair of beams; and a pedestal frame for supporting the beams at one ends of the beams, wherein each pedestal frame comprises: a pair of leg members; a pair of base plates for supporting the leg members; respectively, and a connecting member with a predetermined length for rigidly connecting the legs member to each other, wherein a plurality of the pedestal units are sequentially connected in a longitudinal direction of the beams, wherein one ends of the beams of a one of pedestal units confronts the other ends of the beams of another one of pedestal units neighboring the one of the pedestal units, and wherein the pedestal frame of the one of pedestal unit comprises first regions for supporting the one ends of the beams of the one of the pedestal unit and second regions for supporting the other ends of the beams of the another one of the pedestal unit.
 6. The raised floor skeleton structure as claimed in claim 5, wherein at least one of the pedestal units further comprises: an intermediate pedestal frame that is arranged between a pair of the pedestal frames of at least one of the pedestal for supporting the beams, and wherein the intermediate pedestal frame comprises: a pair of leg members; a pair of base plates for supporting the leg members of the intermediate pedestal frame, respectively; and a connecting member for rigidly connecting the leg members of the intermediate pedestal frame to each other with a given length.
 7. The raised floor skeleton structure as claimed in claim 6, wherein at least one of the pedestal units further comprises: an additional beam arranged at a side of the beams of the at least one of the pedestal units; a plurality of additional pedestal frames for supporting the additional beam, wherein each additional pedestal frame comprises: an additional leg member; an additional base plate for supporting the additional leg member; and an extending member extending from the additional leg member with a predetermined span to the beam arranged at the side of the additional pedestal frames, the additional leg member being rigidly connected through the extending member at a tip of the extending member to at least one of the pedestal frames and the beam that is arranged at the side of said additional pedestal frame.
 8. The raised floor skeleton structure as claimed in claim 5, wherein at least one of the pedestal units further comprises: an additional beam arranged at a side of the beams of the at least one of the pedestal units; a plurality of additional pedestal frames for supporting the additional beam, wherein each additional pedestal frame comprises: an additional leg member; an additional base plate for supporting the additional leg member; and an extending member extending from the additional leg member with a predetermined span to the beam arranged at the side of the additional pedestal frames, the additional leg member being rigidly connected through the extending member at a tip of the extending member to at least one of the pedestal frames and the beam that is arranged at the side of said additional pedestal frame.
 9. A method of installing on a floor a pedestal unit comprising a pair of beams arranged in parallel and more than two pedestal frames each including leg members and a connecting member in a bridge shape and leveling mechanism provided to each of the leg members, the method comprising the steps of: installing two of the pedestal frames at both ends of the beams, respectively; controlling the leveling mechanism of the two of the pedestal frames to level the beams; and after leveling the two of the pedestal frames, installing a remaining part of more than the two pedestal frames.
 10. A method of installing on a floor a pedestal unit comprising a pair of beams and more than two pedestal frames each including leg members and a connecting member and a height control mechanism provided to each of the leg members, the method comprising the steps of: installing the pedestal frames to support at least both ends of the beams; controlling the height control mechanism of the pedestal frames supporting both ends of the beams to level the beams; after controlling the height control mechanisms of the pedestal frames at both ends of the beams to level the beams, installing a remaining part of more than the two pedestal frames; and controlling the height control mechanisms of the pedestal frames other than the pedestal frames at both ends.
 11. A method of installing a pedestal unit comprising a pair of beams, two first pedestal frames for supporting both ends of the beams, and at least one of second pedestal frames including supporting surfaces for supporting intermediate portions of the beams and an lower surface, each of the first and second pedestal frames being provided with a height control mechanism, the method comprising the steps of: (a) installing the first pedestal frames on a floor at both ends of the beams and fixing the first pedestal frames at the both ends of the beams to the beams, respectively; (b) controlling the height control mechanisms of the first pedestal frames to level the beams; (c) after the step (b), fixing the supporting surfaces of the second pedestal frame to the intermediate portions of the beams, respectively; (d) after the step (c) , controlling the height control mechanism of the second pedestal frames to make the lower surfaces of the pedestal frames in contact with the floor; and (e) fixing the lower surfaces to the floor.
 12. A method of producing a pedestal frame that is arranged on a floor and includes supporting surfaces that supports beams for supporting a raised floor, the method comprising the steps of: casting the pedestal frame to include mounds on the supporting surfaces; and cutting the mounds to provide the supporting surfaces. 